If you've watched enough cop shows, you're familiar with the concept of "the throw down gun". If not, I'll make it simple....
A police officer is involved in a confrontation in a dark alley, and, thinking "the other guy" has a gun, shoots and kills him. He knows he's going to have to appear before a "shooting board" to justify his actions, and it's pretty tough to defend the killing of an unarmed person, especially if it's a teenager. So, in the movies, said cop would have a "throw down gun" in his possession, either in his back pocket, or readily available in his squad car. It would be a cheap "Saturday night special", perhaps "liberated" from the evidence locker, and the serial numbers would be filed off. Upon discovering the person who was shot was unarmed, the officer would "throw down" the gun near the deceased, perhaps even causing the dead person to "grip" the gun so it would have his fingerprints on it, and claim "self defense".
ANYWAY, that's the background.
I had a different slant.
As a police officer AND a preacher, I often found myself arresting somebody, and upon talking to them, I felt they had a spiritual problem, and their criminal activity was merely a symptom of the root cause.
I was NOT ALLOWED, however, to initiate ANY "spiritual discussions" in my role as police officer, but I COULD respond, if specifically ASKED, on matters spiritual.
So I began carrying a small "zippered" New Testament in my Tuffy jacket pocket, and during the course of interviewing the suspect or subject, that New Testament would somehow manage to fall out of my pocket -- maybe when I reached in for my gloves, or a breath mint, or change for the coffee machine, or whatever. It was not unusual for the suspect or subject to notice the NT fall out of my pocket, and ask something like, "is that a Bible?" and we were "off to the races" talking about spiritual matters because -- HEY, they ASKED!!!!!
Though I wasn't purposely hiding this "tactic" from my Chief, neither was I broadcasting it, and didn't have any idea if he knew or not. That is, until one night the Chief had been called to the station on another matter, and happened to walk through the bull pen where I was "witnessing" to a guy I had arrested, Bible in hand. The Chief stopped briefly and looked, then asked, "So, that's the infamous 'throw down Bible' I've been hearing about?" I was caught off guard, and was trying to think up an appropriate response, when the Chief just smiled and said, "Carry on!", and walked out of the room.
When I read the "always be ready to give an answer to every man that asks" verse (1 Peter 3:15) I smile and think, "even if ya gotta throw down a Bible to GET them to ask...."
A police officer is involved in a confrontation in a dark alley, and, thinking "the other guy" has a gun, shoots and kills him. He knows he's going to have to appear before a "shooting board" to justify his actions, and it's pretty tough to defend the killing of an unarmed person, especially if it's a teenager. So, in the movies, said cop would have a "throw down gun" in his possession, either in his back pocket, or readily available in his squad car. It would be a cheap "Saturday night special", perhaps "liberated" from the evidence locker, and the serial numbers would be filed off. Upon discovering the person who was shot was unarmed, the officer would "throw down" the gun near the deceased, perhaps even causing the dead person to "grip" the gun so it would have his fingerprints on it, and claim "self defense".
ANYWAY, that's the background.
I had a different slant.
As a police officer AND a preacher, I often found myself arresting somebody, and upon talking to them, I felt they had a spiritual problem, and their criminal activity was merely a symptom of the root cause.
I was NOT ALLOWED, however, to initiate ANY "spiritual discussions" in my role as police officer, but I COULD respond, if specifically ASKED, on matters spiritual.
So I began carrying a small "zippered" New Testament in my Tuffy jacket pocket, and during the course of interviewing the suspect or subject, that New Testament would somehow manage to fall out of my pocket -- maybe when I reached in for my gloves, or a breath mint, or change for the coffee machine, or whatever. It was not unusual for the suspect or subject to notice the NT fall out of my pocket, and ask something like, "is that a Bible?" and we were "off to the races" talking about spiritual matters because -- HEY, they ASKED!!!!!
Though I wasn't purposely hiding this "tactic" from my Chief, neither was I broadcasting it, and didn't have any idea if he knew or not. That is, until one night the Chief had been called to the station on another matter, and happened to walk through the bull pen where I was "witnessing" to a guy I had arrested, Bible in hand. The Chief stopped briefly and looked, then asked, "So, that's the infamous 'throw down Bible' I've been hearing about?" I was caught off guard, and was trying to think up an appropriate response, when the Chief just smiled and said, "Carry on!", and walked out of the room.
When I read the "always be ready to give an answer to every man that asks" verse (1 Peter 3:15) I smile and think, "even if ya gotta throw down a Bible to GET them to ask...."
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